MONDAY, JANUARY 15, 2018
893860_Reflexis.indd 1
11/12/17 4:54 PM
Learning from Levi's
A
standing-room only, spilling-into- stone, for the times, they are a-changin'.'
the-aisles crowd packed the Main Bob Dylan wrote that song 50 years ago,
Stage auditorium Sunday morning and as far as I'm concerned, he could have
for a presentation by James 'JC' Curleigh, written it yesterday."
who holds the positions of executive vice
Turning from Dylan to Sir Isaac
president and president of global brands Newton, Curleigh cited the laws of mofor Levi Strauss & Co.
tion and said, "Think
Curleigh made
about how this ap"Even when you
his entrance riding
plies to your brand
think you've got
a bicycle, guided by
or your business. The
everything figured
a GPS-based direcfirst law is, an object
tion-finding app conat rest tends to stay at
out, something's
nected to his Levi's
rest, until you apply
coming at you from
Commuter Trucker
force. For us, basianother angle -
Jacket with Jacquard
cally, that means that
otherwise known as
by Google ("turn west
if you do nothing,
on 34th Street," said
nothing happens. The
competition."
the voice emanating
- 'JC' Curleigh, Levi's second law of motion
from the jacket, helpis that acceleration
fully, if a few blocks
is produced when a
late) - a fitting setup for his topic, "Learn force acts on a mass. The greater the mass,
from Levi's: How the 150-year-old Startup the greater the amount of force needed. It
Continues to Transform its Iconic Brand." basically says that how big you are, and
In the background, clearly audible how fast you can go, is determined by the
under his opening remarks, could be heard momentum you've created for your brand
the voice of the young Bob Dylan. "That or your business."
song," Curleigh said, "has the line, 'You
The third law of motion, Curleigh
better start swimming or you'll sink like a noted, is that for every action there is an
'JC' Curleigh bicycles into the Main Stage auditorium.
equal and opposite reaction. "This means
that even when you think you've got everything figured out, something's coming
at you from another angle - otherwise
known as competition."
With that as background, Curleigh
discussed some steps Levi's has taken over
the past few years to, as he put it, turn move-
ment into momentum - how he and his
team have worked to create what appears
to them to be the necessary conditions for
success in the current retail reality. This, as
he described it, involves striking a strategic
balance between maintaining and protectSee "Curleigh" on page 30
Fandom 101: Engendering Enthusiasm
as Simple as Meeting Needs
F
ostering a devoted and enthusiastic
customer base doesn't have to be
so difficult.
Orangetheory Fitness and FabFitFun
prove it can happen by keeping things
simple.
During the Sunday morning session
"The Fanatical Customer and Building
Brand Loyalty," Ellen Latham, co-founder
and partner of Orangetheory Fitness, and
David Oh, chief product officer and head
of growth for FabFitFun, spoke about
their companies' rapid successes, boiling
things down to understanding precisely
what people want - and then providing
it. The session was moderated by Barbara
Thau, contributing retail writer for Forbes.
Orangetheory Fitness, founded in
2010 in Florida, aims to deliver more
energy, more strength and more results
through a physiological formula. The
changes come, according to the company,
when customers spend 12 to 20 minutes
in the targeted "orange" zone, or 84 to
91 percent of their maximum heart rate,
during a workout. Those exercising wear
heart rate monitors for fast feedback.
Exercise physiologist Ellen Latham is co-founder and partner of Orangetheory Fitness.
As for FabFitFun, the Californiabased company's subscription service
delivers "Christmas" four times a year
with highly personalized $49.99 boxes of
full-sized items related to beauty, fitness,
wellness and fashion. Here, the emphasis
is on personalization - an introductory
preferences survey includes more than
100 questions, ranging from how often
the customer desires to work out to the
condition of their hair and the types of
fragrances they like.
In both cases, the company does all the
"work" for the customer, seamlessly and
simply delivering a consistent experience
- and garnering great devotion as a result.
There are now more than 850 Orangetheory
franchise studios open in 16 countries. The
3,000-square-foot studios typically have
700 to 1,000 members each; Latham said
when a new studio opens, it's not uncommon to have 500 people signed up before
the doors even open. When that happens,
the studio is part of the Orangetheory Fitness "500 Club" - a "700 Club" is in the
works.
FabFitFun fandom can easily be seen
in the company's social media channels.
Oh is an avid participant himself, on
"24/7," from the time he wakes up to the
time he goes to bed. The company, which
started as an online lifestyle magazine,
added its subscription service four years
ago and now has close to 1 million customers; there's a community post every
minute.
"This is real community," Oh said.
"I treat them like real people ... . That's
something mass market companies don't
See "Fandom" on page 30